Coming Home

Author's Note: Ne, mina! Thank you so much for all of the reviews for the previous chapter! You guys said the wedding was really good, so I'm glad. I was really nervous about it, so you have no idea how happy it made me to see that you guys loved it.

Anyway, on with the family-fluffiness!

"So," said Erza as she, Gray, and Natsu made their way back to Magnolia, "how are things with you and Lucy?" Natsu turned to the swordswoman, and he couldn't help but grin at the mentioning of her name alone. They'd been married for a month, but he still felt like it was just yesterday. The giddy excited feeling in his chest never seemed to falter, and it always intensified whenever Lucy was brought up in conversation.

"Great," he answered quickly, glancing up at the stars through the trees. The stars always reminded him of her. "Fantastic, actually. I don't think the two of us have ever been so happy." Erza offered her signature subdued grin and lightly touched his shoulder. Even Gray couldn't help but smile.

"That's great to hear," Erza said softly before turning to Gray. "And what about you and Juvia? Anything new?" The ice alchemist grinned toothily, and he briefly had a slight spring in his step. Which didn't go unnoticed by the Dragon Slayer, who snickered quietly to himself. Erza glanced at him, and he wished he had his scarf so he could hide his amused grin, but he resorted to using his hand instead. He left his scarf at home with Lucy. He did every time he went on a mission without her since they started dating. He didn't know why, he just did.

"Juvia and I… are, uh, getting married," Gray said slowly, his eye twitching in annoyance as Natsu continued to giggle, mocking him by skipping alongside Erza. The exhibitionist managed to keep that toothy grin on his face, however. Natsu stopped laughing and his stride evened back to walking.

"Copycat," he sneered rather immaturely. Gray reached passed Erza and slammed a fist down on the top of his head. In return, Natsu reached his leg behind the redhead and caught his rival's foot with his own, effectively tripping him.

"Enough," Erza warned dangerously, wanting to stop the problem before it became a problem. The boys huffed in unison and stuffed their hands into their pockets. Then, she turned to the taller of the two males. "You asked Juvia to marry you?"

"Yup."

"Tsk," Natsu scoffed. "You just couldn't deal with it, could ya? Me and Luce got married, so you had to do the same with Juvia to get even." Erza glared at Natsu before Gray had a chance to protest.

"I'll be sure to let Lucy know that you wanting to marry her was so you could get ahead of Gray in terms of relationships." The fire wizard paled, his skin becoming noticeably whiter in the dark of the night.

"P-please don't tell her that," he pleaded quietly. "She would never forgive me. And it's not even true. She would kill me." Gray guffawed, bending over to cradle his bare stomach – don't ask what happened to his shirt. He was wearing it two minutes ago. "What're you laughing at, frost bite?"

"So, I'm guessing…" Gray began, wiping a tear from his eye, "Lucy is the dominant one in your relationship?"

"I dunno what you're laughing about, stripper. I mean, from what I and the rest of the guild can see, Juvia obviously wears the pants in your relationship." Had enough, Erza slammed her fists into their jaws, knocking them both to the ground.

"Shut up, both of you. You're acting like children. For crying out loud, act your age! Natsu, you're married and a father! Gray, you're engaged! The two of you are adults!" Erza continued her ranting as the boys stood back up and resumed their stride, but neither of them were listening anymore. Once the trees dispersed and the city of Magnolia came into view, Natsu bolted into the streets, wanting to be free of Erza's screaming.

After losing his comrades, Natsu speed-walked in the direction of his house, his heart beating frantically in his chest. He'd been away from his girls for too long. He needed to kiss his gorgeous wife, he needed to hold his baby girl. He needed to be home. He smiled when he saw their apartment, and immediately picked up his pace, finally breaking into a run. Judging by how long it's been dark outside, it could be only eight, meaning Nashi hasn't been put to bed yet. Perfect.

Breathing heavily, he got ready to open the bedroom window to surprise her, but he stopped, his chest clenching as the air was expelled from his lungs and his heart slowed to a stop. Lucy was there, holding Nashi in her arms, swaying to the beat of the song that was playing on the stereo. Happy was sitting on the bed, his head bobbing to the rhythm and his tail tapping against the comforter. Around Lucy's neck was his scarf, and he couldn't help but note how… natural it looked on her. With that in mind, his heart fluttered back to life.

Natsu sat there, resting his chin on the window sill as he watched the love of his life dance around the bedroom with his daughter in her arms. He grinned when Lucy happened to glance over at the window. She gasped and pointed in his direction, Nashi looking over her shoulder at him as well. She smiled toothlessly and reached for him, flexing her small hand like she did when she wanted something. A deep chuckle sounding from the back of his throat, the Dragon Slayer finally lifted the window and hopped inside.

"Natsu!" Lucy exclaimed, stepping up to him as Happy turned off the stereo. She wrapped her free arm around his neck. "You're home!"

"I sure am," he mused, hugging her tightly around the waist. He nuzzled into the junction of her neck and shoulder, inhaling deeply. She smelled of cherries, as usual. He longed for her scent every day that he was gone. Not only did it assure him that she was there with him, but it also meant that he was home. She was his home. "I missed you…" he whispered into her hair.

"I missed you, too." She pulled away slightly to place a tender kiss on his lips. When they lingered for too long, Nashi pouted and made a sound of annoyance. Her parents pulled away from each other, laughing as they did.

"I missed you, too, Nashi," said the father, taking her from Lucy's arms. The baby Dragon Slayer cooed and cuddled closer to him.

"Hey!" Happy chirped from the bed. "What about me?"

"Of course I missed you, Happy." The feline made a happy noise and flew over to his 'father,' hugging his head. Lucy giggled and unwove the scarf from her neck, draping it over her husband's – she still wasn't used to that – shoulders instead.

"Welcome home."

Author's Note: If you guys have any ideas for some chapters, why don't you let me know? I'm all ears!